For first time in a while, Rangers clearly are buyers at NHL trade deadline
Rangers' Chris Drury works the bench during a game against the Flyers on March 17. Credit: AP/Bruce Bennett
TAMPA, Fla. – Mika Zibanejad couldn’t stop himself from laughing a little bit as he answered the question. When was the last time the Rangers actually traded for a player at the NHL trade deadline to add to their squad and bolster it for a playoff run?
"I think it was my first year,’’ Zibanejad said. "We brought in Smitty (Brendan Smith) right before, and obviously he knew a couple guys before. It was some time ago now, so it's hard (to remember), but everything's been going well. Now so far, with Frankie (Vatrano) coming in and he knows a couple of guys on the team. Seems like a great guy. So it's just fun to have him here.’’
It was 2017 when the Rangers last were buyers at the trade deadline. They brought in Smith from the Detroit Red Wings to help stabilize the defense, and he played well, helping the Rangers advance to the second round of the playoffs.
But that was the end of their last good run. Management decided the window for contending for a Stanley Cup had closed, and that summer, center Derek Stepan and backup goalie Antti Raanta were traded to the Arizona Coyotes for the No. 7 pick in the draft (Lias Andersson) and young defenseman Tony DeAngelo. The following February, the team announced to its fans it would be entering a rebuilding phase and the next two years the Rangers were sellers, not buyers.
Now, the rebuild is over, and with this year’s deadline coming up on Monday, GM Chris Drury is clearly buying. He’s already brought in Vatrano, acquired Wednesday from Florida for the relatively low cost of a fourth-round pick, and most people don’t believe he’s done dealing yet. He has plenty of salary cap room to bring in more reinforcements, and has lots of highly regarded young prospects to offer up in exchange. He’s probably looking to add another goal-scoring forward.
Zibanejad said the players in the room aren’t thinking about who might be joining them at the deadline. For them, the focus had to be on the small matter of games Saturday and Sunday against the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning and the Metropolitan Division-leading Carolina Hurricanes.
"We play today and tomorrow, so I think we have the games to worry about,’’ he said. "And it's hard to say how (adding a new player or two is) going to affect the group because, I mean, Frank is here now, but other than that, we haven't gotten anyone else. So I guess it'll be more of a question when -- when and if -- new guys are coming in. So we try not to focus on that right now. It's not our job to do that anyway, so we'll just worry about the games and worry about what we can do on the ice. And then the rest is not up to us.’’
Besides, the players and coaches had reason to feel good about what they’ve already accomplished with the group they have. They carried a 38-18-5 record into Saturday’s game, and despite losing to the Islanders on Thursday, they were happy with how they’ve played in the past week or so.
"I think we're confident in our group,’’ forward Barclay Goodrow said. "Our job is to go out there and play, and execute the game plan Coach (Gerard Gallant) puts out for us and play the hardest we can. We can't control what's going to happen in the next 48 hours. It's not our job. That's Dru's job to worry about that.
"Within the room, we're confident, and you know, whatever happens, happens. We'll move on, and we'll be ready for the stretch run.’’
Brodzinski impressed Gallant
It remains to be seen what will happen to Jonny Brodzinski if the Rangers do add another forward before the deadline, but in a short time since he got called up from the minor leagues the 28-year-old depth forward has made a positive impression on coach Gerard Gallant.
"When they catch my eye for a good thing, it's positive, and he catches my eye almost every shift,’’ Gallant said Wednesday of Brodzinski. "He plays quick. He plays fast. There's no issues. He knows our systems and he works hard.’’
Brodzinski, who was captain for the Rangers’ Hartford farm team and led them in goals with 18, was called up March 1, and after being scratched the next night, he’s been in the lineup ever since. When the Rangers got Vatrano on Wednesday and Gallant inserted him to the lineup Thursday against the Islanders, it was Julien Gauthier, who has been with the team all season, who came out to make room, not Brodzinski, who had scored a goal Tuesday against Anaheim.
Asked what it is about Brodzinski he likes so much, Gallant put it simply.
"Everything he's done,’’ the coach said. "He's done a good job.’’
Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
